Metal and Flesh
by ranmafan1
Summary: Ranma/DBZ fusion. *Rewritten Prologue.*


Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Ranma ½, Dragonball Z, or any other trademarked/copyrighted product in this fanfiction. They were created by people a lot more imaginative than me. I am also not making any money off of this. This is merely for entertainment purposes.  
  
Note: This story takes place before Jusenkyo. Ranma and Genma are in China with Ranma being sixteen at the beginning of the story. DBZ starts before the Android Saga and prior to the creation of Nineteen. Dr. Gero is not an android yet.  
  
Metal and Flesh by ranmafan1  
  
Prologue  
  
Deep within one of the many caves in the mountains of China resided one of the most brilliant minds the world had ever known. Unfortunately, he was also among the most evil and demented ones as well. Years ago with his Red Ribbon Army, he tried to take over the world, but his plans were foiled by a young boy named Son Goku. Since then, Dr. Gero had been possessed to gain revenge against his accursed nemesis. Utilizing his advanced technology, he was able to gather data about Goku's progression in power. Through the use of this information, he had constructed a brilliant plan to eliminate his enemy through the design of sophisticated androids, ones whose power even surpassed that of the tyrant Freeza.  
  
Dr. Gero was typing fervently at a computer console. His current objective was finalizing his plans to destroy Goku. Several yards behind him stood two individuals. One was a young woman with blond hair who was wearing a jean skirt and jacket combination. The other was a young man with black hair and who possessed a red handkerchief tied around his neck. They were casually leaning against the doorframe and awaiting instructions.  
  
"So, what is there to do today, Doctor?" asked the boy with obvious sarcasm placed on the name reference. He smirked as his keen eyes could see a slight tensing of Dr. Gero's muscles from irritation.  
  
"It is getting a little boring around here lately," commented the girl casually, who also smirked at seeing the rising agitation in the scientist.  
  
Trying to keep his annoyance with the two at bay, Dr. Gero concentrated on further completing his current project. 'Those two are trying my patience too much lately.' They were becoming more and more disobedient with his commands and showing increasing signs of insolence. 'I might need to reprogram them soon if this continues.' It was becoming more and more likely that they would be able to break through their obedience programming. 'I still have quite a bit of time before that becomes too much of a risk.'  
  
Right now, Dr. Gero's current predicament was on how he could utilize the extra resources he had at his disposal. Due to a breakthrough in his design for his future android body and that of Nineteen, he had a current excess in the rare polycarbonate materials, enough to create yet another android. The problem was finding a suitable candidate for augmentation.  
  
Looking through his data on potential candidates, Dr. Gero was once again glad that he decided to create his main base of operations in China rather than in Japan. The most important of factors was how all of the Z-fighters were living on the island. This made the chance of them discovering his experiments very small. The probability was even lesser when taking into consideration the unusual energy fields surrounding the valley and mountain range his headquarters was located. They seemed to prevent energy senses from detecting outside the field inwards, but not vice versa. The source for the unusual phenomenon appeared to a series of pools in the valley below [1]. 'Someday I am going to have to investigate that further.' But for now, his plans for revenge were top priority.  
  
According to the data his insect robots collected, there appeared to be three dominant tribes within the valley, the Musk, the Amazons, and the Phoenix. The first group seemed to specialize in strength and speed, much like the Z-fighters, but to a far lesser degree. Because his implants would take priority over any natural abilities such as these, all of them were basically useless for his purposes. Dr. Gero wanted to experiment in finding a fighter with sufficient skill to complement the power his android implants would give. This also eliminated the Phoenix people as possibilities since their only worthwhile feature was the ability to fly, but this was an ability androids could easily learn at their energy levels. Besides, Dr. Gero was not even sure if his technology would be compatible with the only prospect for them, their king, with his regenerative abilities. 'That leaves the Amazons then.'  
  
Typing in a few commands, Dr. Gero looked at the information profile for the aforementioned group. He noted that one of the elders for the tribe would be ideal, particularly the Matriarch, but he did not have sufficient time in his schedule and resources to use gene therapy in rejuvenating them. So he would have to settle for the next best individual, that being the young purple-haired girl.  
  
As he was about to order Seventeen and Eighteen to retrieve the girl, his long-range sensors picked up above-average energy readings. Raising an eyebrow at the figures he was receiving, he typed into his console and brought up the viewing camera of the insect robot that transmitted the numbers. Waiting quietly in the background, the two androids' interests were peaked when the larger monitor activated. On the screen appeared two individuals, one of which was an older man sporting a white bandanna over his head and wearing wire-trimmed glasses. He was trading blows and kicks with a boy possessing raven hair tied in a loose ponytail.  
  
It was fascinating to the scientist how the two were able to stay in air so long without flying. As the battle between the two continued, it was obvious the younger of the duo was starting to win. Flipping over a slightly overstretched kick from the man, the boy was able to flip over him and subsequently land his own kick on the back of the other's shoulder, propelling him onto the ground.  
  
The teenager then landed gracefully on his feet and thin ginned arrogantly while stating, "Gettin' slow in your age, old man?"  
  
Growling slightly, the 'old man' flipped onto his feet and assumed an offensive stance, "Don't get cocky with me, boy." He proceeded in jumping towards his son.  
  
The boy merely smirked. "Whatever, oyaji." The two clashed once again.  
  
Smiling darkly, Dr. Gero chuckled to himself, which caused the two behind him to raise their eyes in curiosity. 'How fortunate. It's too bad that I do not have the time or materials to make two androids. That man would still make an excellent addition as well. Oh well. The boy will suffice.' Outloud, he commanded while pointing towards the teenager, "Seventeen! Eighteen! I want you to retrieve that boy and bring him here.relatively unharmed." After a moment's thought, he added, "Eliminate the man as well. He is of no consequence to me."  
  
The aforementioned pair smirked in unison. Seventeen replied on their behalf, "Of course.Doctor." The last word was drawled out, making the scientist boil in silent anger. Satisfied at seeing him simmer in repressed fury, the two flew off towards their targets.  
  
Once the duo left, Dr. Gero grinned sinisterly. "Those fools don't even know the future they have ahead of them. They're nothing more than tools to be used by my true masterpiece, Cell." Chuckling darkly, he noted with an air of finality, "Of course, they won't even realize it until it is too late."  
  
Flying far away from Dr. Gero's laboratory, Seventeen and Eighteen used their sensors to locate their objectives' ki patterns. Eighteen was the first the break the silence. "You did notice what he was analyzing before?"  
  
Smirking, Seventeen replied, "Of course. It seems that there will be another member to team soon."  
  
With her own smirk, Eighteen stated, "True." After a few moments, she continued, "Our bonds are growing weaker everyday."  
  
Seventeen smiled darkly, "And then the real fun will begin." With a burst of energy the two sped off to achieve their mission.  
  
After a short period, the two were hovering over their targets, both of which appeared to be taking a breather from their sparring session. Eighteen spoke simply, "Let's get this over with." Enough being said, the pair descended.  
  
Meanwhile.  
  
Ranma Saotome of the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts was relaxing slightly as he and his father were taking a break from their usual sparring. He had to admit, the old man was in rare form today. For the past few months, he had been winning more and more of their fighting sessions. After this training ground called Jusenkyo, his pop told him that they were going to be heading back to Japan. This made Ranma very excited, especially considering that it signified the end of this training journey. 'I'll finally be able to see mom again.' Whenever he brought up the subject of his mother, Genma was always tight-lipped and would avoid answering any related questions concerning the topic.  
  
"Come on, boy! No time to be slacking off," yelled out Genma Saotome.  
  
"Yeah. Yeah. Whatever, pops," mumbled Ranma disinterestedly. The sooner they got to this Jusenkyo, the faster they could go home.  
  
As they were about to restart their sparring, a voice interrupted them. "Excuse us."  
  
Both father and son almost stumbled in surprise from the unexpected voice. Neither of their senses detected anyone's approach. Looking at the source, both took stock of their visitors. Two teenagers, one boy and one girl, with the former having his arms crossed across his chest and the latter with her hands on her hips.  
  
Ranma was looking at pair suspiciously and with some bewilderment. 'How the hell did these two sneak up to me?' While being fully awake and aware of his environment, no one had been able to catch him off guard for a long time. Unfortunately for Ranma, his ki senses were not fully developed due to his lack of learning any higher-level ki techniques yet. To him, something just felt off and dangerous about the two in front of him.  
  
However, his father Genma, who had developed his own sets of ki techniques, could sense the complete lack of ki in the duo. 'What are they?' What his senses were telling him should have been impossible. Still, this was not the only thing that made Genma begin to feel fear. He could tell by the looks in their eyes that the two were veteran killers.  
  
Ranma broke the brief silence by asking warily, "What do ya want?"  
  
The boy smiled enigmatically and stated, "I'm going to have to ask for you to come with us."  
  
Looking dubiously at the teenager, Ranma cautiously replied, "What for?" Meanwhile, he and his father discretely slipped into defensive stances, although it would take keen eyesight to have spotted the change in leg positioning.  
  
Apparently, Seventeen did notice and his smirk widened. "You'll find out in due time." Eighteen looked amused by the situation as well.  
  
"Yeah, well, we're kinda busy right now. Maybe we'll catch up with ya later." Ranma's danger sense was highly active at the moment, telling him something big was about to happen. Genma's own was reacting similarly.  
  
"That is quite out of the question." All of the sudden, Seventeen seemed to disappear to all but Eighteen, only to reappear in front of Ranma.with his fist implanted in the younger Saotome's stomach.  
  
Pain was the predominant thing on Ranma's mind when the punch landed in his midsection. So much of it was present that he had to fight the urge to lose his lunch on the spot. When the fist was extracted, he could not help but collapse to his knees and clutch his stomach as it throbbed in agony.  
  
With his eyes wide in disbelief, Genma could only gape at the spectacle in front of him. 'That.thing moved faster than I could even see! And he took out the boy with only one punch!' He had never seen his son taken down so easily since he was a child.  
  
All of a sudden, Eighteen spoke conversationally to Genma, "Now that we have him under control, we just need complete the second part of our mission."  
  
Gulping a bit, Ranma's father was able to stutter out fearfully, "A-and what is that?"  
  
Smirking, Eighteen replied, "To kill you."  
  
Before he could even react to her words, Eighteen's hand shot out and fired an energy blast towards Genma. It flew with such speed that before he realized what was happening, the energy ball was right in front of him.flying inches away from his face. A large explosion behind him knocked Genma out of his paralysis. Tentatively turning his head, Genma's eye nearly popped out of their sockets at the destruction he was seeing. A large crater that was around one-hundred meters in diameter was now in place of a portion of the forest surrounding him, including the area were they were camping.  
  
Whimpering, Genma shakily turned his head towards the teenaged girl who just performed a feat his Yamasenken techniques could not do with such ease. Even Happosai did not have such power!  
  
Still clutching his still aching body, Ranma could only watch in abject shock. His mind was reeling with the surrealism of the situation. Some girl his age just threw what appeared to be a ki blast and nearly killed his father with it. Ranma could not even get angry at the moment because of the wild thoughts he was having. The girl interrupted his thinking.  
  
"That was a warning shot." She lifted her hand once again. "This time, it's for real." Her hand began glowing with power.  
  
Before she fired, Ranma weakly asked, "W-why." He trailed off, struggling to his feet, which slightly surprised both Seventeen and Eighteen. Once he was shakily standing, he continued, "Why are you doing this?"  
  
Shrugging indifferently, but not moving her hand, Eighteen responded, "Because we were ordered to take you in and kill him. It's as simple as that." Eighteen did not know why she answered his question. Maybe it was because of a small measure of respect on her part for him being even able to stand up again, even though Seventeen's punch was held back a lot.  
  
"W-what." stated Ranma incredulously. He could believe someone was doing all of this just for his capture. What was so special about him?  
  
Through his fear, Genma listened to the conversation, though it was taking an incredible amount of will to do that. These 'demons' (which is what Genma surmised that they must have been) really were going to kill him, and he would not stand a chance in defending himself against them. The only possible route for his escape would be the Umisenken, but those techniques required special preparations for which he did not have time.  
  
It was then that the second part of their statement sunk in, being to kidnap Ranma. Even in his panicked state, Genma was able to piece together that for some reason they needed the boy and had to get rid of any witnesses, namely him. This meant that there was still a chance he could get out of this alive.  
  
Although one could easily think otherwise, Genma Saotome did really love his son. Unfortunately, he was also a terrible father and made many mistakes when raising the boy. Throughout each of the instances, he could not comprehend what type of future consequences his present actions would have. Also, before being a father, he was a survivor. It was this ability that helped him get through training with Happosai. Regrettably for Ranma, it was this same instinct that would cause the teenager to feel betrayal that would leave a gaping wound in his heart.  
  
And so, Genma knelt and on the ground and performed a technique that he and his training partner Soun only used before on their dreaded master, the Crouch of the Wild Tiger. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Please don't kill me."  
  
His apologetic ramblings amused the two androids, while Ranma could only look at his father with disbelief and disgust. 'What the hell is the old man doing!?!' It was then that Ranma realized the rest of what Genma was saying. 'What!?!'  
  
"You need the boy, right! Please just take him and leave me alone! I promise not tell anyone about this! Please!" Genma kept his head pressed against the ground while continuing to plead on his own behalf.  
  
"P-pop." was only thing Ranma could weakly say to his father while witnessing him basically selling out his own son to these monsters. Ranma had not felt such betrayal by Genma since the Neko-ken.  
  
Both Seventeen and Eighteen traded glances with the former speaking, "Well, what do you think? Should we let him live?"  
  
Putting down her hand, Eighteen smirked in reply, "Our primary order was to capture him." Pointing briefly to Ranma briefly, she continued, "And it would make the doctor pretty mad."  
  
With his only grin forming, Seventeen agreed. "Yes, it would, wouldn't it?" Turning to the still prostrating martial artist, he called out, "Okay, old man, you can go, but your son is coming with us."  
  
Genma heard the reply and gave silent praise to the heavens that he was going to live. Not even bothering to express his gratitude, Genma took off at the fastest speed his body would move. Guilt could not even form in his mind at the moment since escape was his only thought. Those feelings would come later.  
  
Ranma watched his father run away in a sort of detached mindset. He saw it happen, but could not comprehend the action. It was Seventeen's voice that broke his trance.  
  
"I guess they don't make fathers like they used to," stated Seventeen calmly with an amused expression on his face.  
  
This snapped Ranma out of the well of depression that started to build in him. Now it was being replaced with something darker and more welcome to embrace. A burning hatred was fueling his being for the moment, one that made him overcome any remaining pain felt previously. The well of his rage was shown by the large red aura blazing around him.  
  
But no matter how strong Ranma felt with his anger powering himself, he was simply no match for an android of Dr. Gero's design.  
  
Seventeen raised an eyebrow, but did not lose his smirk. If anything else, it became more pronounced. "Did I hit a sore spot?" Seeing the aura burn even brighter, Seventeen continued, "Well, I'm getting kind of bored right now. Let's get this mission over with, right, Eighteen?"  
  
Shrugging, Eighteen responded, "Whatever."  
  
Seventeen turned back towards Ranma and simply stated, "Goodnight."  
  
Before Ranma could even blink, Seventeen disappeared in front of him. All of a sudden a blow to the back of his head knocked him unconscious, but not before one last thought went through Ranma's mind.  
  
'Oyaji no baka.'  
  
In Japan during that night.  
  
The name Bulma Briefs was well-known throughout the world. Beautiful, intelligent, and one of the richest women in the world, her name was respected by the majority of the populace. At the moment, she was also in quite the predicament. At one of Capsule Corporation's manufacturing sites, there was a major malfunction to one of the pieces of equipment and none of the engineers could figure out what the problem was. So Bulma was forced in coming to the plant herself to analyze the machinery. Of course, since she was in so much of a hurry, Bulma only thought to bring one capsule car for transportation. Also, because her parents were on vacation, she was forced to bring her one-year old son Trunks with her since they usually babysat.  
  
Because of how serious the problem turned out to be, it ended up being a good idea they requested her expertise. Actually fixing the equipment required all day and into the night to accomplish. Bulma was traveling on her way back to her home, having neglected to pick up other capsules at the manufacturing site due to her tiredness. As it turned out, the capsule car she took was pretty low and fuel. She did not notice this fact because of her rush beforehand and her exhaustion afterwards.  
  
Orange Star City was generally known as a peaceful city; however, it still had its criminal element. And those aspects became more pronounced at night. It also ended up that Bulma got stranded in the middle of one of those rougher neighborhoods. With her son carefully cradled in one hand, Bulma was digging around in the packed trunk of the car for an extra fuel tank while trying to hold down her fear of the surroundings. 'Bulma, what the hell were you thinking!?! You drag yourself and your son through this area and didn't even bother to check the fuel of the car or even take a phone with you. Some genius scientist you are!!!'  
  
A gruff voice froze Bulma in tracks. "Well, look what we have here, boys."  
  
Tentatively turning around, the young woman was confronted with three men standing before her. Each of them had lecherous grins on their faces that made her skin crawl.  
  
Another one of them spoke. "Yeah, a real cutie too. Looks like we're gunna have some fun tonight."  
  
A look of comprehension crossed the third's face. "Hey, I know her. She's Bulma Briefs of Capsule Corp." Suddenly, the other two also recognized the woman in question.  
  
Chuckling, the first, who was the apparent leader, noted, "I guess we really struck it rich tonight. I bet your daddy would pay us real good to get ya back, wouldn't he?" The other joined in the laughter.  
  
The three of them began to converge on the woman, who could not move since she was trapped between her car and the men surrounding her. Still, Bulma glared defiantly at the individuals, then screamed out, "Help! Help! Somebody, help!" while she held her precious child protectively closer to her.  
  
The leader laughed at her plea. "I'd give it up if I were ya, lady. There ain't a lot of people around here and those that are no better than to go against us. Now, shut up and come quiet-like."  
  
Bulma realized then the truth of his words. The streets were unoccupied and the buildings were as well due to redevelopment. Somehow little Trunks was able to sense the danger he and his mother were in and began to cry.  
  
This seemed to aggravate the three. The leader of the group told the others, "Dammit, shut the kid up!"  
  
As the men converged on her, Bulma used her body to cover her child, which also prevented her from seeing the surroundings. Suddenly, several loud screams, followed by thumps against the concrete, broke through the night. It was only a moment later when she realized that it was not her that had screamed. Tentatively straightening herself out, Bulma looked up and subsequently stared in disbelief at the scene. The three punks that were moving towards her were now beaten and unconscious on the ground. Standing over them was a teenager carrying a large backpack and holding a heavy- looking umbrella. He also had a yellow-black bandana tied around his forehead.  
  
Somehow, Bulma knew this boy was not a threat to her. This thought was compounded with the fact that Trunks had stopped crying and he always seemed to have good instincts concerning people. "Um, who are you?"  
  
A little earlier.  
  
The Eternally Lost Boy Ryoga Hibiki was once more trudging along aimlessly through another city. He recently had found out of a person matching his rival Ranma Saotome's description who was heading towards China. And as such, he had attempted to follow him in order to get his revenge over skipping their duel (while ignoring the fact that he was three full days late for the assigned time). However, Ryoga made a few wrong turns here and there and was now wandering the streets of Orange Star City. Currently, he was trying to find someone and ask for directions, but the streets were deserted. 'Damn you, Saotome! I'll get you for the hell you put me through!'  
  
A loud scream broke his train of thoughts. "Help! Help! Somebody, help!" Turning towards the voice, he caught sight of a scene that made his blood boil. Three street punks were converging on a young woman and her child. A small part of his brain not set on beating the attackers to within an inch of their lives respected the fact the woman did not show the fear she had to have been feeling.  
  
Taking his trusty umbrella from his backpack, he charged forward. Although he did not have the speed of his rival and more depended on his raw strength, Ryoga was still a martial artist and thus was light-years ahead of what the three assailants could do. Before they could reach the woman and her baby, Ryoga jumped and landed between them and their targets. So surprised where they by his sudden appearance that they did not even have a chance to react before the martial artist systemically demolished them. The end result was three broken, beaten, and bloody bodies on the ground.  
  
It was then that he heard the woman ask him a question. "Um, who are you?"  
  
Turning around, Ryoga was able to get a clear look that the woman he just saved. What he saw made him nervous. Having 'traveled' as often as he had, Ryoga did not have a lot of experience when interacting with the opposite sex. Therefore, it was understandable for him to be tongue-tied with the female standing before him. "Um, er, Ryoga, Ryoga Hibiki." He nervously scratched the back of his head, not unlike a certain pigtailed rival, though you would not get him to admit that.  
  
Bulma smiled understandably. 'He's acting just like Yamcha used to when we were teenagers.' Sighing internally, she added to herself, 'But that's all in past.' Outloud she stated, "Well, my name is Bulma Briefs and I'd like to thank you for saving me and my son from those thugs." She was a little surprised that he gave no outward recognition to her name, though it was understandable considering how he apparently was some sort of traveler. Hearing her baby gurgle happily, she was once again shocked. Trunks was not normally that expressive since he seemed to take after his father with respect to emotions. "And it seems little Trunks here is saying thank you too."  
  
Getting even more nervous, he responded, "Yeah, well, it's a, uh, martial artist's duty."  
  
For the past minute, Bulma was deciding on how to repay the teenager for helping her out of the previous predicament. With his statement, the scientist suddenly got a brilliant idea, which come frequently, on how to pay back Ryoga for his kindness. 'Maybe I can have one of the guys show him some pointers.' "So, you're a martial artist?"  
  
"Um, yeah," tentatively replied Ryoga, wondering why she was making him repeat his earlier comment.  
  
"Well, I might be able to help you out with that," Bulma casually stated. She had a feeling he would find it hard to believe with her own lack of fighting skills. One could plainly see the doubt on Ryoga's face, so before he answered, Bulma elaborated, "Some of my friends are pretty good fighters and they might be able to help you." Still seeing the hesitation, she tried a different approach, "Besides, how about you stay in one of the guest rooms of my home for the night. It's the least I can do to for you." She could tell that he probably did not have a place to stay by the looks of his clothing.  
  
Ryoga was still unsure whether or not he should follow the woman. He doubted she knew any fighters that could give him a challenge, but a warm home for the night did sound good for a change. Ryoga was still uncertain on whether or not to take her up on the offer since he was not used to such kindness being directed at him. "I don't know."  
  
"I simply won't take no for answer. Like I said, it's the least I could do," she looked defiantly at him, as if challenging Ryoga to say no again. As if sensing her mother's emotions, Trunks had a similar expression on his face directed at the lost boy. It was sort of creeping the teenager out.  
  
Gulping, Ryoga managed to utter, "Um, okay." Bulma's expression softened, followed by Trunks, with his agreement.  
  
"My place is this way," she pointed down the street, "but first." After closing the trunk of the car, Bulma moved towards the front of it and pressed a button on the side. All of the sudden, with a large poof, the car condensed into its capsule again.  
  
This caused Ryoga to jump slightly from surprise. He had seen capsule objects before, but whenever Ryoga witnessed them compacting and expanding, it still unnerved him. It just was something that did not make sense to the lost boy.  
  
After picking up the capsule, Bulma turned back to her now temporary guest and started a conversation, "So, tell me about yourself, Ryoga."  
  
Walking home proved to be a fairly difficult task for the genius. Whenever she turned her head to face Ryoga, he seemed to be starting to wander off in the wrong direction. Apparently, he had some sort of directional problem. Although it was quite an unusual condition (to say the least), it did not faze Bulma too much, not like some of the things she had seen over the years. 'Hmm.maybe I can make him something to help with that problem.'  
  
Eventually, they did make it to her home. When glancing at Ryoga, she smirked a bit at his bewildered expression. Apparently, he recognized the company logo marking the walls.  
  
"Y-you're." Ryoga stammered out. Being so shocked by the revelation, he could not even finish his sentence.  
  
"Yep. Capsule Corp. was started by my father," Bulma cheerfully stated. It was fun to see people's reaction when realizing who she was (the exception being those thugs from before).  
  
After entering in the appropriate security codes, Bulma decided to give the dazed Ryoga a brief tour of the home. Being still in his stupor, Ryoga hazily complied. It was when they got to the gym area that Bulma became angry. Hearing loud clangs against metal, the mother growled, "Is he still at it?" Going to a nearby door, she smacked a button and the portal opened.  
  
Snapping out of his trance, Ryoga tentatively followed her inside. He was quite taken aback by the size of the room. What really drew his attention, however, was the large dome-shaped building in the middle of it. Trailing after her towards one of the glass panels, he looked inside. He was quite surprised to see someone training inside, although Ryoga had no clue as to why the individual was straining so much in moving. What really drew his attention, however, was the sheer determination burning in his features. Every fiber of the spiky-haired man's being seemed absorbed in the exercises. There was also something else about him that tingled Ryoga's senses. Something about the man was dangerous, deadly even.  
  
Ryoga then noticed Bulma going to a nearby control panel and pressing a key. The screen next to the button that had the number three-hundred and fifty on it was steadily decreasing until it hit zero. All of the sudden, the dome's door opened and an irate Vegita stepped out.  
  
"Woman, what do you think you are doing!?!" bellowed the Prince of Saiyans.  
  
Ryoga had to force down a shiver from the tone, but Bulma seemed unaffected by it.  
  
"You know what I'm talking about, Vegita. With all of that noise that you're making Trunks won't be able to go to sleep," retorted Bulma. 'Sometimes this obsession with becoming a Super Saiyan gets real annoying.'  
  
Snorting, Vegita snapped back, "As if I care." Turning his gaze towards the young man standing next to her (who was trying to remain inconspicuous), Vegita asked angrily, "And who are you?"  
  
Before Ryoga could be stutter out a response, Bulma answered for him, "His name is Ryoga Hibiki and he saved me and Trunks from some thugs tonight."  
  
For a brief moment, something flashed in Vegita's eyes, but it was extinguished so quickly that no one noticed. Instead, he snorted and responded to Bulma in his usual manner, "You could not even protect your own child, woman."  
  
This in turn angered Bulma insanely, but somehow she was able to calm down. "Well, not all of us are fighters, Vegita," she noted with some bitterness. Taking a deep breath, she added, "Anyway, Ryoga is going to be staying the night and I thought." She trailed off as inspiration struck her again. Suddenly smirking, Bulma continued, "I was thinking that you can train him for a little bit."  
  
"What!?!" This woman had the audacity to even consider he would train another person. 'The impudence of her!' Stalking straight up to her, Vegita glared her in the eye, which made Ryoga actually want to get lost for a change, but it did not seem to phase Bulma. He abruptly smirked darkly at the woman. "And why should I?"  
  
Bulma's smirk increased in intensity while she stated in a sweet voice, "Because he saved your son's life. I imagine that would classify as some sort of debt of honor, wouldn't it Vegita?" All traces of humor left Vegita's face, being replaced by silent fuming. Shrugging indifferently to his attitude, Bulma continued, "Besides it not like I'm asking for months here. Maybe just a week or so to give him the basics on how to train using the gravity chamber." Seeing him about to explode with the thought of someone else using his training equipment, she added "And don't give me that look, Vegita. I can have another one built so he doesn't interfere with your own training."  
  
She then started to walk out the door, her mission accomplished. Bulma knew Vegita would do what she had requested. Although he had wiped out entire civilizations, the scientist knew that Vegita had a sense of honor, a twisted one, but nonetheless it was there. And now there was an honor debt to be paid. 'Sometimes I'm just too good,' she noted to herself. Before exiting the room, Bulma casually turned back to Ryoga. "Please wait here, Ryoga. I have to get Trunks ready for bed and then I'll take you to a guest room."  
  
So now it was only Vegita and Ryoga left in the room. Silently, the former turned towards the lost boy, boring into him with his eyes. Gulping audibly, Ryoga was frozen to his spot and unable to part his gaze from the fearsome image before him.  
  
Suddenly, Vegita too stepped towards the exit, but not before commanding his temporary student, "Training starts tomorrow at sunrise. Do not be late." His voice had a tone of finality to it that promised immense amounts of pain if you disobeyed.  
  
Therefore, Ryoga fervently nodded in acceptance when the man turned and looked at him, all the while silently praying that Bulma would help him get here at the appointed time.  
  
Before he left, however, Vegita casually asked, "Where did you find those two?" Again, the voice of authority was present and demanded an immediate answer.  
  
Although he did not know the exact street location, Ryoga was able to stammer out a description of the area.  
  
And then it was only Ryoga who was left. He let out a large breath, feeling relieved that the man was gone. Something about him was extremely powerful and dangerous, so much so that it took all of Ryoga's courage not to shake from fear when being in his presence. Now, it looked like his vengeance would have to wait until later, but Ryoga was not really that upset about it. Somehow, he knew this Vegita person would be able to help him become a much better fighter.  
  
'And then, Saotome, revenge will be mine!"  
  
End Prologue.  
  
Author's Notes:  
  
[1] Like you can't guess where it is.  
  
I was not really satisfied with the previous version of the fic. With the earlier plot, the NWC was not going to be making an entrance for some time. Also, the other members of the Ranma ½ cast were going to be decisively weaker than the star of the show. At least, this way there is some balance. Of course, the androids are as powerful as Super Saiyans, so there will still be quite a large difference, but not as much as beforehand.  
  
Another thing that might confuse some people is Vegita's willingness to train Ryoga. As Bulma stated, Vegita may have killed a lot of people and although he has a dislike for 'weak' races like the human one, he still has a warrior's code of honor. By protecting his 'family,' an honor debt was accumulated that Vegita is going to pay by giving Ryoga a brief amount of training.  
  
Finally, there may be some confusion as to the ki senses. As stated previously, because Ranma and Ryoga have not learned higher level ki techniques, their ki senses are not really developed to feel the overwhelming (or lack of) ki within the DBZ crew. They are only strong enough to be really classified as a danger sense. Well, I guess that's it for now. C&C would be appreciated.  
  
-ranmafan1 


End file.
